In the aftermath of USC and UCLA leaving the Pac-12 for the Big Ten, realignment rumors are continuing to swirl.
The latest reports, by Dennis Dodd of CBS Sports and John Canzano, center around discussion between the Pac-12 and ACC on a “loose partnership” between the two conferences.
Of note today, the Pac-12 issued a statement saying “The Pac-12 Board of Directors met this morning and authorized the Conference to immediately begin negotiations for its next media rights agreements” to keep the conference afloat.
In his article, Canzano takes “this to mean that a potential TV partner (Read: ESPN) might be initiating the ‘loose partnership’ discussions.”
ESPN owns the TV rights to the ACC through 2036.
It’s not exactly clear what the Pac-12-ACC partnership could look like.
Canzano writes that it could include an “ACC vs. Pac-12 championship game in Las Vegas at the end of the season,” “a shared media rights deal with ESPN” and “regular-season crossover games between the entities in football and men’s basketball.”
It’s an interesting time in college sports as the realignment wheel keeps turning.